Joseph Kennedy Sr., starting from a solidly middle class family in Boston, created a fortune that gave his children and grandchildren the freedom to pursue public service. Kennedy’s business ...

but his mother reversed the names so Joseph wouldn’t be immediately marked as Irish. Joe Kennedy came from a comfortable home; P. J. was in the liquor business, engaged in local politics and had ...

At the controls was Navy Lt. Joseph P. Kennedy Jr., 29, the oldest son of a former U.S. ambassador to Britain, and a man who carried the promise of one of the great political families in American ...